Tuesday, January 27, 2015

The council is located in Dublin Ohio in a house built in 1941. It was a residence until the city purchased it in 1999 and the Arts Center opened to the public in 2002. It is located on riverfront property and is open free of charge to the public. They have displays and put on special programs.

those back two windows look into D'Art's office

Mom arranged to meet with Janet Cooper, the marketing and public relations manager. She was SO welcoming and took mom on a tour of the center before they settled in to talk about D'Art. Normally D'Art meets visitors at the front door and joins the tours, but apparently heard the pawparazzi was coming to see him, so he got out his nip cigar earlier in the day and was sleeping off a nip high when mom got there.

mom brought him a toy

D'Art has lived at the center for 5 years this coming February.

They think he was about 4 years old when he moved him, making him about 9 years old now.

Janet had gotten a phone call from a friend that this big orange boy had been found on a farm and the barn cats were not being very nice. TD as he was called at the time needed somewhere else to call home. Janet went around to her co-workers hoping someone would be welcoming. To her joy and surprise, the executive director said to bring the cat to the arts center and make him their office cat. The director christened him D'Art and he is a permanent staff member, attending meetings and greeting visitors.

In an interview on WOSU, (click to see their video) a local public tv station, the executive director David Guion states that when people come in they are greeted and then asked if they are allergic to cats. But he also says that having D'Art at the center keeps it from being a stuffy art gallery and gives it that homey quality that welcomes everyone.

That being said, if people are allergic or have fears or if there are installations going on with the door being open, D'Art is shut in his office. Don't feel bad...he shares it with two co-workers and it used to the master bedroom of the house. He is living in luxury.

Janet said there really has been no down side to having D'Art on staff. There have been many upsides however: from comic relief to stress relief for staff and artists to greeting kids and helping give tours. D'Art makes sure everyone coming into the art center is welcomed. He is also sure to attend all staff and board meeting. He is given free rein of the first floor that houses the galleries and the second floor that was converted from bedrooms to office space. Janet said the only time recently that he was kept upstairs was when there was a glass exhibit and they wanted to make sure he was safe and nothing was accidentally knocked over. Did we mention he is a big boy - weighing in at over 18 pounds?

Janet mentioned that he was wonderful when he arrived. Her friend tramped through the snow to get him in a carrier then drove him along with herself and her child to Ohio to bring him to the center. He walked out of his carrier and made himself right at home.

D'Art seems to be an equal opportunity love for the staff, but he has a special routine with Christine who is their program manager and runs the front desk. He will come into her office and sit and stare at the water cooler until she fills a small cup for him and then holds it for him to drink from.

Speaking of artists, D'Art has been using the office iPad to create some art of his own and donates it to local animal charities to be used as fundraisers. And international photographer Richard Bailey did an exhibit at the center and spent some time photographing D'Art - and then sent the pictures in a book to the center. While they haven't notice D'Art inspiring many artists, they have noticed that he helps them set up and inspects the art once it is installed. He also makes sure to be present for the art camps that are put on in the summer for local school kids.

Mom expressed to Janet that she love the idea of having an office cat and that more places should get on board with the idea. Janet couldn't agree more. She said D'Art has been a joy to have around and they love him dearly. He had to have elbow surgery last fall and then spend time being crated to avoid jumping and she said that it was nerve wracking for all of them not to have him all over the building.

Overall, what a wonderful experience. D'Art got a new home. The arts center got a fuzzy welcoming committee. If you are in the area, we strongly suggest you stop over to see the art and meet D'Art.You can find them on facebook as well.

Monday, January 26, 2015

We got a mystery box the other day. Mom has seen an article on Hauspanther about a tree. Normally mom doesn't like spending a ton on trees, but she has been trying to get new things and after doing some math about putting up other shelves, this made some sense to her.

It was pretty easy to put together. It comes with an allen wrench so you don't need any tools either. It took a little time (maybe over an hour or so) but it doesn't have a deep foot print.

And here is the other pretty great part. It tensions to the ceiling....no screwing to the wall or the ceiling or anything else.

Got the shelves on. Mom says the only thing she really wishes is that the covers on the shelves were removable. These covers are glued on and won't come off, so it could be a little harder to clean. And there are no other options - leopard print it is.

So far there have been some cats checking it out. Mom moved the other cat tree into the back bedroom. She needs to move some things out of there and wants to create a "super highway" back there that includes the tree to give us, especially Spud, a way to get up and around the room off the floor. But that is a project for another weekend.

Though mom says this plan may have backfired....Daiquiri has taken to sleeping on the tree in the other room. MOL This is pretty sturdy. Mom has had to tighten the screws at the top, but she doesn't think she had it quite right the first time. Sunday morning Tim and Tom were both on it so it is pretty sturdy too. We give it 4 paws up.

Mom says that she wasn't sure she got the right effect, but that after leaving it alone and then looking at it on Sunday, she got what she wanted. While she knows she isn't great at it, she says it is fun to get away and try something different.

Plus mom got to spend time with Miss Kelly from Whiskers in the Window cause she drove down to paint her angel kitty Einstein

They come in slabs, but break apart very easily. Mom wasn't sure what we would do with these. However, with the exception of Ivy and Junior, everyone loved them. Back for seconds and thirds.... And Mo tried to nom mom's fingers....

Are there more????

These were a hit....2 ounces per bag, so light for shipping purposes. Though over $8 per bag, so a little expensive at the rate we eat treats around here. But hey....it's fish so it's health food right??

**We got the treats for our opinion, but getting the treats for free did not affect our opinion. Everything you read and see here is our own thoughts and pictures.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Mom was interested. She has read that it works better on tile floor, so she got it out and put it down in the kitchen since that is the main space without carpet in our house.

Daiquiri was the only one that seemed interested. Mom let her check it out before turning it on. And then mom spent about forever about 5 minutes trying to get it back out from under the washing machine. It bounced around and around and right under the washer. Mom banged around quite a bit and shook the washer and then the bug came back out on its own.

The adults were a little weirded out by the noise, but for a first time, not bad. Daiquiri was good - until it touched her.....

Thanks to Miss Amy and all the cats over there. We can't wait to try it out again.....

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

We sure are....we know the mom watches college football, but on Sunday Feb 1, we will be glued to the TV watching The Kitten Bowl.

Be sure to keep your eyeballs peeled for The Lucy Bowl commercial sponsored by The Lucy Foundation too - remember they are supporting adoptions and spay and neuter programs.

Here's an interesting fact - there are 80,000 animals in the stands watching the game in the commercial. All pictures are of real pets out there...and the number represents the number of animals killed in shelter EVERY WEEK due to lack of homes and space.

And here's something cool - Joey Herrick, the President of The Lucy Pet Foundation was in the Google Hangout with BlogPaws talking about this .... you can see the video here

Now for something fun:

They are looking for posts featuring a sign with the hashtag #TeamDog or #TeamCat

(we know what team WE are on)

Link to @lucypetfdn on Twitter or @Lucypetfoundation on Facebook

(posts can be on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter)

And include the following phrase:

The biggest Bowl
commercial this year may be #TheLucyBowl on Kitten Bowl!

Two random winners
will win ipad minis and a #TeamDog
or #TeamCat pet jersey, and 4 other winners will receive #TeamDog or
#TeamCat sports packs. They will be giving away sports packs on
Twitter and elsewhere throughout the campaign, too. The contest ends on Feb. 1
at noon PST. You can resubmit photos or submit different photos every day.
You can even use photoshop. One per day per social media
platform.

Go #TeamCat

We have been putting pictures up on our Twitter account - you can follow us as @RandomFelines

**disclaimer: This post was brought to you in an effort to raise awareness about Lucy Pet Foundation's upcoming ethical pet population campaign. Lucy Pet Foundation provided all images and information about the commercial, and will be entering our site into a drawing for a chance to win $500 towards a 501c3 rescue of our choice! If you are a blogger interested in spreading the word about this campaign, while also enjoying the chance to earn a donation for your favorite rescue, contact bloggers@lucypetfoundation.org and request more information!

Friday, January 16, 2015

Yep - mom got to send her home last night with her new family. Concats sweet girl!!

Cass is going home with a mom and a sweet 15 year old girl who already bought Cass a purple collar. She is going to live with a dog....mom asked about it to be sure about introductions. We know she will be fine - they have a miniature dachshund (just don't tell Sir Thomas over at The Cult of Otis)
~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daiquiri is getting her big girl teeth in. Mom thought she had something stuck the other night but turns out the baby tooth hadn't quite fallen out yet..... MOL
~~~~~~~~~~~~

'scue me....pardon me....comin' thru

I HAB an emergency!!!

Mine fuzzy-red-ball-toy has gone missing!!! I need it to play fetch with mine mom. I hab looked all ober the house and can't be finding it ANYWHERE!!! How am I going to play now?? Mine mom tried another toy, but it isn't the same.

I NEED mine fuzzy-red-ball-toy.

If you hab seen it, please let me know!! If you had stealed it, gib it back NOW!!!I don't have green papers for a reward, but we hab some treats here I could send if I need to.

Thursday, January 15, 2015

We talk about the rescue where mom volunteers all the time. It is where our foster kittens come from and go back to for adoptions. Many volunteers maintain colonies of feral cats and there is a huge outreach for TNR.

This year, Miss Mona, our fearless leader is one of the women being honored!!! We couldn't be more excited or more proud.

The reception is tomorrow night and we are sending mom as our representative. Here is some of what was said on the website:Colony Cats Adoption Center opened in 2009 to provide a place for potential adopters to visit some of the great cats and kittens in need of a home. They provide a cage free environment for people to interact with the cats. Colony Cats also has been instrumental in getting over 9,500 community cats sterilized. They assist colony caretakers with shelters, trapping, food, medicine, and vet care. Since their inception, Colony Cats has placed over 7,500 cats in forever homes. “We offer assistance to pet owners when things are rough for them. Quite often, just supplying food and flea prevention is all that is needed to keep that pet in the family. We have helped several families and individuals by temporarily holding their pets until they could find another living situation. Everything we do is for the animals. Many lives have been saved because of the assistance we offer.”

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Since mom was there for part of it, we are going to let her tell the story.

Wednesday night I stopped at the adoption center just to check it. I was looking for a copy of Kahlua's adoption papers to add to my "collection" and was talking to a friend who also volunteers. As we were talking, a woman (maybe early 30s) came up with an application and asked about how long it would be held. She recently had her older cat pass away and wasn't sure if she was ready but wanted to have all the paperwork done in case she decided. Everything looked good and Karen (my friend) said we would keep it on file and just let us know when she made up her mind. Karen and I continued to chat a little and the woman went around the adoption center looking at different cats.She stopped me as I was leaving and just looked baffled. "How do I choose?" I smiled and said well, you can wait for someone to choose you, or we can see what you are looking for. She wanted a girl, not terribly young or old, a little active but not too and companionable. As we were talking, I looked around the room. Now, keep in mind that I don't spend much time at the adoption center - I more do fostering and adoption events. So I don't know too many of the cats at the adoption center. But, as I looked around, there was Mae snoozing in a cat bed on top of one of the towers we use for small kittens. Eureka!!I took the woman (who I know know is Emma) over and introduced her to Mae while telling her about how I found her. Mae stretched and blinked at Emma. I told her to lean close and scratched down Mae's back to get her to "mrow" for us. She did and Emma laughed. I said I had to run home but left Emma giving Mae some love. Friday night I got a text from my friend Emily who was volunteering at the adoption center. "Mae went home". After some back and forth, I was able to confirm it was the woman I had spoken to on Wednesday. And by later that evening she had posted a picture to Colony's facebook page and said Mae had settled right in. It will just be Mae and her new mom in her home....which I have no doubt will make Mae very happy.

Monday, January 12, 2015

Holy moly it is COLD here. Thankfully we aren't getting the snow that some people are, but got finally got UP to freezing on Sunday. brrrrr

Mom spent most of the weekend around. here. She said it was just too dang cold to be outside. She did go out Saturday night to spend time with her best friend and then there was an adoption event on Sunday. Otherwise, we cranked up the heat in the condo and did this:

The cover seems to be doing a good job on the couch. However, mom wants to find a way to keep some of the sides down as some cats are trying to get under the cover. Good luck mom :)